DCVFA Endorses ANC Candidates in 2024 Election
DC’s most hyper-local election is that of the Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner. Formally elected and sworn into office, these Commissioners make up commissions that represent neighborhood interests. Overall, there are 345 commissioners spread out over DC’s eight wards (you can find your ANC Commissioner here). They are unpaid, and elegantly volunteer their time to elevate their community’s interests in DC government.
In preparation for the 2024 election, DC Voters for Animals sought to evaluate which ANC candidates are best suited to represent animal interests. This is part of our effort to make DC into a city that is the best in the country for animals. 60 ANC candidates filled out our questionnaire which asked questions relating to DCVFA’s policy priorities, ranging from the companion animals we live with, to humane treatment of animals in our food system, to our local wildlife. The responses taught us a lot about what the public is thinking, where priorities lie, and where further education is needed.
See the questions we asked ANC candidates and how they responded!
Protecting Animals from the Fur Trade is a Slam Dunk
“Would you support the Fur Products Prohibition Act—a law to protect animals by prohibiting fur sales in DC?”
The most popular question was about support for DC’s bill to ban the sale of fur, the Fur Products Prohibition Act. Of the 60 responses, over 90% of respondents said they support DC’s proposal to stop the sale of animal fur in fashion. Introduced by Councilmember Gray (Ward 7), the bill would continue the movement of cities & states passing legislation to end the extremely inhumane practices used to turn animals into attire.
While the bill has yet to pass, we encourage advocates and community leaders to testify at the hearing for DC’s fur bill on November 13. Tell Councilmember Pinto and the DC Council that DC residents are ready to lead on compassion in fashion—sign up for a training with DCVFA here.
Humane Rodent Solutions are Where Commissioners Feel they can Most Make a Difference
“Do you support implementing humane rodent management solutions as an alternative to toxics like rodenticide?”
Rodent control is one of the topics ANC Commissioners are most enthusiastic about. Many candidates voiced a desire to balance community interests to manage rat populations with ethical and ecosystem priorities. The spread of rat poison is unregulated and has a way of making its way into the food chain, causing prolonged and excruciating deaths for raptors, dogs, and other animals who feast on the poisoned rats. That is why discourse is increasing around humane alternatives, such as contraceptives to prevent rats from procreating, community education on strategies to prevent rats from accessing waste in our trash bins, and diverting food waste to be turned into municipal compost.
Pet Friendly Housing is Popular, And There are Many Different Perspectives
“Do you support the passage of the Pets in Housing Act?”
DCVFA asked ANC candidates what they thought about the Pets in Housing Act, Councilmember Robert White’s bill to 1) eliminate breed discrimination in housing 2) require DC to operate a pet friendly shelter for people in need, 3) set a cap on pet rents and security deposits. While some candidates indicated that they were on board with the theme of the bill but had differing questions about individual provisions, the overwhelming majority identified this as a good next step for the district’s companion animals and people with pets looking for stable and secure housing.
For Animals in Our Food System, People are Most Ready to End Force Feeding
“Do you support DC sharing compassion for animals who are force-fed by prohibiting products like foie gras?”
“Do you support DC endorsing the Plant Based Treaty to call on the United Nations to utilize plant-based food systems as a tool to fight the climate crisis?”
“Would you support DC passing a resolution to call on a global moratorium of factory farming of octopuses in captivity?”
While more than half of the responding candidates approved of the Plant-Based Treaty initiative to address the climate impact of animal-agriculture based food systems, 90% voiced their support to end force feeding of the ducks used to make foie gras. It was a strong indicator for DC’s appetite to end this inhumane practice—DCVFA calls on our restaurants and decision makers to outline a transition away from products coming from force feeding in our city.
A first-time question for Commissioners relates to the wonderous underwater creature: the octopus. Recent documentaries have brought public interest in octopuses to new heights. Concurrently, new technology is allowing corporations breed octopuses in captivity for the first time. Unfortunately, this means that octopuses served on people’s plates are increasingly likely to be factory farmed. Mass food production companies threaten to keep these solitary animals in extreme confinement, with little regard for animal welfare or ecosystem impacts. Although this is a novel topic, ANC candidates expressed overwhelming support for DC taking action to prevent our city from contributing to this disaster for such intelligent creatures.
See if DCVFA Endorsed Your ANC Comissioner
Candidate questionnaires are an extremely useful tool to assess how our elected officials feel about DCVFA’s policy initiatives. With 60 ANC candidates responding to the DCVFA questionnaire, it gives us a sense of how the general public is feeling as well, with candidates serving as a rough proxy for DC residents. Further, the questionnaire serves as an educational tool with important background information on animal protection campaigns and why we feel they are important. You can view the full questionnaire to see how we justified action for these animal protection campaigns.
DC Voters for Animals endorsed a litinary of candidates across all eight of DC’s wards, demonstrating the diversity of animal lovers running for office in DC.
Have you considered running for ANC? We need more animal champs as decision makers for our communities. Reach out to learn more. There are even vacant ANC seats that are looking to be filled.
Full Endorsed Candidate List
1A10 Vida Rangel
1B04 Aaron Lemon-Strauss
1B06 Miguel Trindade Deramo
1C04 Joe Van Wye
1C09 Katherine Swanson
1E06 Josh Jacobson
1E07 Brian Footer
2A03 Trupti J. Patel
2B01 Anthony Musa
2B02 Jeffrey Rueckgauer
2B05 Alex Marshall
2B08 Zach Adams
2B09 Christopher Davis
2E01 Kishan Putta
2G01 Howard Garrett
3A01 Thaddeus Bradley-Lewis
3C02 Adam Prinzo
3C03 Janell Marie Pagats
3C05 Zach Shaben
3C07 Gawain Kripke
3E06 Alexandra Gianinno
3F05 Adrian Jesus Iglesias
4B01 Doug Payton
4B06 Tiffani Nichole Johnson
4B10 Jinin Berry
4C03 Mike Warburton
4C05 Brittany Kademian
4C06 Maggie Dart-Padover
4D06 Stoyan Dimitrov
5B01 Edward Borrego
5B03 Jingwen Sun
5B07 Tosha Crawford
5D01 Reginald Shaw-Richardson
5D03 Anna Roblin
5E03 Mike Bloomberg
5E04 Huma Imtiaz
5E05 Tyler Lopez
5F06 Joe Bishop-Henchman
5F07 Kelly L. Rzendzian
6/8F02 Elissa De Souza
6A01 Paul Spires
6B03 David Sobelsohn
6E08 Dale Prince
7B03 Travis R. Swanson
7B05 E Reddick
7C06 Patricia Stamper
7D05 Ebony Payne
7D10 Dev Myers
8A01 Tom Donohue
8A06 Scott Thach
8B04 Kimberly Little
8D06 Wendy Hamilton
8E01 Robin Scott
8F01 Nic Wilson
About DC Voters for Animals
DC Voters for Animals lifts up the policies and politicians doing the most for animals and our community in DC. We advocate for all animals, including companion animals such as cats and dogs, animals in farms and labs such as chickens and beagles, and wildlife such as foxes and deer.